World of the Brave
by rebeccapearce
Summary: A pitch for the opening scene of the first episode of Season 3 of Agent Carter, written as my entry to Renew Agent Carter's What Happens Next Fanfic Contest.


It was drizzling in New York City and Peggy Carter had to smile. Had she not known better, she would have said that her adopted city was purposefully welcoming her back by attempting to look as much like home as possible – but then again, most recently New York had started to feel quite a lot like home. Where else, after all, could a person be greeted at the airport by not just one but _two_ happy, familiar faces?

"Oh, _there_ you are!"

Peggy was unsurprised that Ana Jarvis was the first person to come into her field of view, and equally unsurprised by the bone-crunching hug the other woman wrapped her in. She was used to Ana's gestures of affection by now, so much so that when she glanced over her friend's shoulder to see a sheepish-looking Edwin Jarvis, she shook her head slightly and grinned.

"It's good to see you, Miss. Carter," Jarvis told her, his hands wrapped around an umbrella he was holding over her and his wife, "We rather missed you."

"Thank you, Mr. Jarvis. Likewise," Peggy admitted. The rain seemed to be dying down, and she gestured for her companion to close his umbrella. "I brought along some gifts in hopes that you'll forgive my absence. There's tea from England, naturally, and some kind of brandy from Hungary I am told is called pa…"

" _Pálinka_ ," Ana finished excitedly, reaching to take the glass bottle in Peggy's hand, "Thank you! You're a wonderful woman, Miss. Carter."

"Agreed," Jarvis chimed in after opening his tin of tea to take a long whiff, "Nothing smells quite like it."

Peggy's smile only grew. She stepped forwards when Jarvis reached for her bag and thanked him as he took it to the car.

"So, where to, Miss. Carter?" Jarvis questioned, "I've received instructions from Chief Sousa to take you directly to headquarters so you can be debriefed…but I've also been told by Miss. Martinelli that you're to be taken straight home so she can hear all about your trip to Europe."

"Actually, Mr. Jarvis, I had something else in mind. Would you mind terribly taking a detour through Brooklyn?" Peggy responded.

"Of course not," Jarvis said. Peggy thought that he looked rather curious, but neither he nor his wife questioned her as they all bundled into the car. She was immensely thankful that, of all the people she knew, these two were the ones who had come to meet her. Her next endeavor would possibly the endeavor of her lifetime, and she was certain there was nobody else she would rather share it with first.

"And how was your trip, Miss. Carter?" Jarvis ventured, "I heard you were catching up with old friends."

"There's no need to be coy, Mr. Jarvis. I'm sure Howard told you that I was to have a meeting with Colonel Phillips," Peggy noted with a raise of her eyebrows, "It was…very productive, actually, and it was good to see him again. He has barely changed since the end of the war, although in his case I don't necessarily believe that to be a bad thing."

"He must be very concerned about…about what happened to Chief Thompson," Ana remarked, keeping her voice quiet, "As I'm sure you all are."

Peggy gave a nod and, for the first time since having met up with the Jarvises, her smile completely vanished. They were already out on the road by then and so she turned her attention to looking out of the window, her mind on the casket she had watched being buried not so very long ago. She and Chief Thompson had never been friends, exactly, and yet she could not help but see his death as yet another on the very long list that haunted her.

"Chief Sousa will do everything he can to find the murderer, I'm sure," Jarvis interrupted her thoughts, "And he'll be glad to have you back by his side to assist him, Miss. Carter."

"I hope so," Peggy admitted, "Though he might not like some of what I may have to tell him."

"Well, I presume he often has to hear things he does not like," Jarvis commented, "From what I'm told he all but begged to be able to come meet you off the airplane himself."

The smile returned to Peggy's face, and she just hoped that Jarvis wouldn't be able to see her blush in the rear-view mirror. "Well, I think that's quite enough about my travels," she remarked, "What news do you have for me of Howard's latest antics?"

Peggy was happy to sit back and listen and roll her eyes as Mr. Jarvis told her about young woman he'd had to track down after she spent the night with Howard and disappeared with a trinket which turned out to be a vital component of one of his latest projects. It was towards the end of his story that she happened to glance outside the window again, and she found herself gazing upon familiar streets.

Much like Colonel Phillips, Brooklyn had not changed very much since the last time she had seen it. The fighting had been different here, as she often had to remind herself; no bombs had fallen on this soil, and this was not a continent that had needed to rebuild itself piece by piece. America could remain the land of promise as it had been intended to be, a place where many – including herself – could start over.

"Steve grew up here," Peggy commented, "He told me once that he took a beating in that alley…and that car park…and behind that diner."

"Is that why you wanted to come, Miss Carter?" Jarvis questioned. His tone was soft, and she couldn't help but wonder if he might be questioning her loyalty to Steve and whether she had truly let him go. In all honesty, the same thought had been crossing her mind a great deal recently, and she had come to realize a small part of her never completely would.

"Sort of," she admitted, "Colonel Phillips and I spoke for quite some time about the past…but we also spoke about the future. We spoke about how the world has changed since the war and the SSR hasn't moved along with it. It was founded to combat a specific enemy, but now we know there are many enemies out there. We've seen them ourselves and we've felt the effects of them ourselves. HYDRA remains a threat, yes, but it's not the only one. After Whitney Frost and the Council of Nine, which may or may not have had something to do with what happened to Chief Thompson…perhaps the SSR as it stands is no longer cut out for the job. Perhaps we need something else, something new, something to represent the values Steve always held so dear. You know, I once asked him why he didn't run away from the people who tormented him and he told me that if you start running you can never stop. He believed in pushing back, and so do I. Most of all, I have come to believe that the SSR is not adequately fulfilling its most important purpose."

"And what would that be?" Jarvis asked.

"Protecting the world, of course," Peggy replied, this time with a hint of a smile.

"Forgive me, Miss. Carter, but…" Ana began, "Perhaps it is not my place to say, but…that seems an incredibly heavy weight for one person to bear."

"Well, I was not considering doing this entirely alone," Peggy explained, "Howard Stark would certainly be a very useful asset, all his faults aside."

"Naturally," Peggy heard Jarvis agree. She couldn't see his face, but she could tell his tone was tinged with disappointment.

"I'm well aware that Howard is a very busy man, however," Peggy continued, "It would certainly be most useful to have a liaison. Someone on the ground, someone who was dependable…trustworthy, of course…preferably with an equally dependable, trustworthy, amiable wife…"

Peggy was taken aback when the car came to a rather sudden halt in the middle of Brooklyn. Worry crossed her mind for a fleeting moment, and she wondered if the traumatic events Ana had been through during her last mission had changed Jarvis's mind about his eagerness to help her. When he turned around, however, she very quickly realized her concern was unwarranted, as he was grinning from ear to ear.

"How may we be of assistance, Miss. Carter?"


End file.
